The Gathering of the Maidens
by Inebriated Caffeine Imbiber
Summary: With Raven all but accounted for, and Cinder presumed dead, Ozpin only had to find the Winter and Summer Maidens before they are either disposed or, or have been held hostage and taken advantage of. But the party will split once more, and will Jaune's loyalties still lie the same way after all of this is over?
1. The Time Has Come

The fire crackled softly in the corner as the clock ticked its life away. The common room was filled with a pleasant warmth and the furniture provided an almost sleep-like comfort, the cushions sinking at the slightest hint of pressure.

Team RWBY, Team JNR, Qrow and Oscar/Ozpin were seated in their own chairs, each facing the coffee table in the middle. They had just arrived in Atlas, having bypassed border security through the only open port.

The air had become somewhat sombre as the constant reminder of their current situation pulsated with a fanciful ominous beat. The soft blue pulse emanating from the Relic of Knowledge intermixed with the flickering light filled the room. It was as if the relic itself was alive, the pulsating being an analogue for a heartbeat.

Finally, it was Ozpin who broke the silence, relaying his thoughts using Oscar as a vessel. He tapped his cane softly to garner the attention of everyone in the room. "Right now, we are in the most advantageous position that we have been in for quite a while, ever since the Fall of Beacon. We now finally have a chance to take the fight to Salem and her lackeys _directly_." He had placed emphasis on the last word to ensure that no one had any illusions of how their war was currently going.

Qrow moved forward to elaborate further. "We have eliminated both Adam and Hazel from the equation. Good work you two," He nodded to both Yang and Blake, both who sported embarrassed but pleased smiles. "But we aren't in a position where we can fall back if we do make mistakes, so we must be absolutely careful… After our fight with Hazel we can assume that the rest of Salem's lackeys are more powerful or just as powerful. Problem being we have no idea who they are or what they look like, except that crazy scorpion guy we fought at Oniyuri."

The group went silent again, each individual looking at each other before Jaune felt the urge to break the silence. "So… What is our plan now? Are we going to find the other relics?" He leant forward as he gave Ozpin an intense stare.

Ozpin looked down in contemplation before looking back up. "We have the knowledge of the Spring Maiden, who happened to be Raven. I have reason to believe that she won't provide us any problems. However, the current identity of the Fall Maiden has been very obscure. Originally it was Cinder, but we are not sure if she has met her demise and the power has been transferred to someone else, or if she is still alive… I suggest that we assume that she is now dead, and that the Fall Maiden is someone who is not involved, it is not a situation that I am comfortable with… However, in the line of current events I suggest another course of action that we can ultimately achieve with a somewhat measure of success…"

He left the air hang a while. Jaune, who had been intensely thinking was the one who finished the sentence. "Finding the Summer and Winter Maidens?" He asked curiously.

Ozpin nodded sagely. "Indeed, it would be pertinent for us to at least catalogue the whereabouts of the other Maidens, if we can keep tabs on them then we can keep them safe from Salem's corruption. I do not want a reimagining of Raven nor Cinder."

"As thus we are going to be splitting into two teams. Team RWBY, you will be with Ozpin and I while we try to find the Summer Maiden… Team JNR will be looking for the Winter Maiden."

"Wait," Nora piped up incredulously. "You expect us to find the Winter Maiden on our own!?"

"I have an associate in the area who will provide assistance in your search. Namely the reason why Qrow and I are not separating is because my taking over of Oscar's body is only temporary, as our melding hasn't been completed yet. And as of now, Oscar is not fit for any sort of combat that I myself would face."

"Basically I'm Oz's baby sitter." Qrow remarked gruffly before taking a long swig from his hip flask.

"If you put it in words like that, then yes. Also, Oscar himself has yet to unlock his Semblance and thus his combat potential is limited."

"Do you have any idea on where this associate is?" Jaune asked, a bit miffed.

"I apologise, she does tend to want to live… "off grid" as it were. But nevertheless, she is a most tactical and stalwart party member to have, you'll certainly find her most fitting towards your team composition."

"Speaking of tactics, you three are in need of a firepower enhancement." James Ironwood stepped down the steps. He had a far more conspicuous uniform of matte black and dull grey buckles.

"I have taken pains to look at each and every one of you to see what could be improved or complemented. As thus, I have brought over an enhancement that I believe you three will take nicely to." He had in his hand a large silver suitcase to which he placed on the table, opening the clasps and revealing what was inside.

Laid out on a velour indented pad was a Dao sabre that was beautifully crafted, the blade having a crisp satin finish and a hair cutting edge, preceded by a green leather wrapped handle which was capped by a pommel that could be used to bash skulls in. To complete the ensemble was Ren's emblem laser etched into the handle and the flat of the blade.

Accompanying the blade was a domed chest plate with yellow lines running throughout the whole plate, ending with a stylised version of Nora's emblem in the centre, followed by two arm guards that provide both flexibility and protection.

The third and final set of items were two curving pieces of near transparent white metal that seemed to glow with a dull heartbeat. They seemed to be made to fit onto a shield of Jaune's size, giving a pronounced razor sharp edge.

"Uhm… Thanks?" Jaune said with some confusion as he picked up the pieces of metal. "What are they?"

"This equipment is to enhance and further compliment your fighting style and aura. Ren, I realised that you lack a dedicated slashing weapon that allows you to block and defend yourself, I do hope that you find it useful." Ren nodded gratefully and took hold of the sabre, surprised at how light and lively it felt in his grasp, almost as if it was an extension of himself.

"Nora, your current fighting style forces you to get close to the enemy to deal incredible damage, but you have little chance to use your Semblance or defend yourself. This plate will allow you to defend yourself from attacks from Grimm while charging your Semblance with the lightning Dust embedded into the metal. You can use this both offensively and defensively, charging yourself for a powerful strike or to project as a lightning barrier."

"And Jaune… You were the most difficult to enhance. Your sword and shield combination make for a dependable defence, and the ability to increase your power at the sake of defence gives you adaptability and flexibility. Thus, we believed that we should enhance your strongest card… Your Semblance. What you have right there are Aura Amplifying metal sliders for your shield. If you attach these, you can expand your use of your Semblance tremendously. You'd be able to channel your Semblance to more than just one person, or you could project your Aura as a large forcefield, which will be no problem since you have a prodigious amount of it. Plus, the sliders are razor sharp themselves, so you can make your shield a lethal weapon."

Jaune went silent as he ran his fingers over the smooth material. He then experienced a forceful flashback of his days spent training with Pyrrha, and tears gathered in his eyes. "We're getting there Pyrrha… We'll avenge you… I promise." He whispered underneath his breath, the rest of the group having their attention diverted except Weiss who looked at him worriedly.

"These weapons are sure to serve you well, and I do hope that you use them to their fullest ability. A lot of this is experimental as well, so think of it as a scientific venture." Ironwood elaborated as he sat on a chair.

"S-so… When do we leave?" Jaune gathered himself again before looking at Ozpin.

"My associate is within a hikes distance away, while team RWBY, Qrow and I have to take a Bullhead towards our destination. You can leave now and get there in the early morning or leave in the morning."

Jaune looked over at his team before looking out at the sun setting. "If we leave now, we'll be able to begin our search sooner… What do you guys think?" He turned to Nora and Ren, who both twiddled their thumbs in thought.

"While you are right in the earlier that we meet up with her, the better chances we'll have at finding the Maiden we will be ill-rested and ill-prepared… It's a choice between rest and objective."

"Welllll I wanna go right now! OH! I wonder what she looks like!? What are her weapons!? Does she wear awesome body armour!?" She gasped with another thought, "What if she's a super secret spy that can't reveal herself without being hunted!?" Nora machinegunned these hypotheticals at the whole group who felt like they were in a hurricane with how much energy she expelled.

"Nora." Ren put his arm on her back, "Calm down, I am sure she will live up to our expectations."

Ozpin nodded sagely once more. "She is more than meets the eye, so don't underestimate her for her looks."

"Yeah of course! I mean you look at Jaune and you don't think much do ya!?" 

"Hey! I'm not that bland looking, am I?" Jaune asked desperately of everyone else.

Yang and Blake looked sideways to avoid the question, Ruby was stuck with "umming" and "ahhring". Weiss just looked over at him with a somewhat apologetic smile, adding to the crushing experience Jaune was feeling.

"B-betrayed by my own friends." Jaune whispered melodramatically which lead to Qrow laughing with a hint of dryness.

"Keep that up kid and you might end up beating me in the edge department." He continued to laugh quietly which lightened the atmosphere somewhat.

Jaune shook himself to the present. "Again, when we do leave?" He asked of his team who just gave him blank stares. "Alright then, well we'll leave tonight."

An hour or so of packing left team JNR with heading out. The farewells were short lived, everyone asking to keep in touch via continental comms and to stay safe, Jaune was ensured that his goodbyes were short, he didn't like goodbyes all that often.

It wasn't long until Jaune set the pace for the team to keep up with. It was a gruelling pace that didn't compromise on the fitness of the individual.

Nora, who was by far the fittest of the team, was already panting an hour into the hike. But Jaune, who had a face of stone, did not breathe hard. It was as if his brain had shut down temporarily and didn't realise the stress he was putting on his body.

"Jaune." Nora thought to get the attention of their leader.

But Jaune acted like he didn't hear her. If anything, he increased the pace of the march.

"Jaune…" Nora spoke again, a bit louder this time.

But Jaune still didn't respond. And Nora, who wasn't one for patience, picked up a pebble and flicked it at the back of his head.

This had an affect that Nora was wanting, but not in such intensity. Jaune rounded over with a murderous look on his face. "What!?"

His voice thundered out into the far expanse of trees around them, making him sound like a god. Nora and Ren were stunned by his sudden explosion of anger and aggression, as this was a side they have never really seen before.

"What could you possibly want from me!?" He continued, staring at the both of them with an air of mania. Clearly, he was on the worst precipice at the time and he was just pushed slightly, nearly falling off.

It was a while before Nora could speak again, regaining her composure somewhat. "You're walking around with that scary look on your face, and you're radiating negative feelings Jaune… You're going to attract Grimm."

"Too late, they are already here." Ren said calmly as he gripped the hilt of his new sabre.

"Oh great." Jaune commented darkly as he drew his sword, Nora preparing her hammer.

They were first assaulted by two Boarbatusks and three Beowulves that were led by an Alpha. The tusks rolled after Nora, who used her hammer as a baseball bat and sent them flying to who knows where.

Ren danced in between two Beowulves, slashing with his sabre when needed and pelting them with submachinegun fire from his primary weapon. One easily became decapitated by a rookie mistake while the other took to fighting with fang and claw.

Jaune's fight was less than graceful and more just straight up bashing his opponent. He had completely forgone style and used his rage to beat on the Beowulf, who was already trying to dodge all of the attacks but being thrown around recklessly. He wielded his sword in a two handed grip, disregarding edge alignment as he just rained down blows on his opponent.

It wasn't long before they dispatched their enemies, but there was one elusive Alpha Beowulf who they could not pin down, it kept slipping out of reach and retaliating with controlled strength. Soon the group was left tired and worn out while the Alpha still stood up with pride, a hint of animalistic victory in its red eyes.

Until a sword landed in the ground with a noticeable _thunk_ , causing everyone in the area to look at it with bewilderment. It wasn't along until a much deeper, larger _boom_ could be heard as dust flew everywhere, finally settling down as it revealed a tall figure in ominous plate armour covering their whole body.

The Alpha tilted its head curiously before roaring in a defiant challenge. The figure stood up straight and prepared into a stance, sword still buried in the dirt. The Alpha snorted viciously before as it got onto all fours, growling and winding its muscles up for a pounce.

The figure let out a deep breath…

And the Alpha leapt with surprising speed, covering the distance in half a second. But the figure moved even faster, taking the sword out of the ground and bisecting the Alpha in one clean stroke faster than the eye could see.

JNR were left speechless as the Alpha disintegrated, their attention drawn to the figure as they sheathed their blade and made a pointed look towards Jaune.

"Jaune Arc?" A surprisingly feminine but strong voice emanated from the visored barbute.

All Jaune could do was nod hesitantly. Apparently that was what they were after, as they grabbed their helmet and twisted it off, revealing shoulder length midnight black hair and riveting green eyes.

"Good… I am Onyx Argent… The associate of Ozpin you've been searching for."


	2. The Chill of Being Hunted

The ground was of polished concrete, the surface reflecting the dim lights that hung loosely from the ceiling like a dangerous fixture. But that floor was slick with sweat and a bit of blood, coming from both combatants as they squared each other off on the other sides of the ring.

"You lack discipline." Onyx announced harshly to the blonde boy opposite to her. "You lack training, you lack skill, you lack the ability to control yourself!" She surged forward and did a dazzling display of sleight of hand tricks with her sword.

"I know that! You think that I don't!? I know I don't have what it takes!" He responded with a deep throated yell and went for an obvious overhead smash.

Onyx blocked it by simply sliding her blade to the guard and twisted it around, locking it in place. "When you come here, leave your self pity at the door!" She screamed as she flung Jaune over her shoulder and into a wall, leaving a nice Jaune shaped hole in it.

Jaune was left coughing onto the floor and Onyx kicked him up again. "Now, again." She said, turning back to him and twirling her sword.

"What point is there!?" He shouted at her, feeling like this exercise was beyond pointless.

"Pyrrha may have taught you proper stances and how to use your shield, but she was yet a master of a sword! It clearly shows in your usage of it, that she lacked the expertise to properly train you in that field. That is what I am here for!" Onyx bellowed at him.

"Don't you talk about Pyrrha like that!" Jaune screamed at her as he launched himself again, undisciplined and full of rage.

Onyx spat at the ground and dashed forward, clotheslining him before he could react, leaving Jaune sprawled on the ground. "No discipline." She commented again before going back to her side of the room, readying into a stance again.

"Then start teaching me." Jaune retorted more out of desperation than anger.

"Then start wanting to learn!" She shot back. "Now get up!"

He grimaced before hauling himself up, his chest heaving up and down.

Both Ren and Nora were looking on with worry. Sure enough, Onyx was nothing short but a master when it came to the blade, but her teaching style was little more than tough love and beating the snot out of their student until they learnt.

"No idea why you would melt your girlfriend's personal equipment to make your sword bigger, seems kinda superfluous considering you lose so much defensive potential for only a small amount of extra swinging power, unless there is something special about your broadsword mode?" She queried as she twirled her blade again.

"It seemed like a good idea at the time." Jaune mumbled meekly.

"Well sorry, it's not quite good enough."

"We-." Jaune was about to retort before a blaring alarm began to make itself known.

"Oh now what?" Onyx mumbled as she went to the main computer and flicked through her security cameras, revealing a slate-grey coloured object flying through the cameras, nearly too quick for the human eye to perceive.

"What was that?" Nora asked with worry as the team were gathered around her shoulder.

"Something that warrants you three leaving, immediately. Gather your gear, gather whatever supplies and extra equipment you need and get ready to head out. I suspect he'll be here within five minutes… Now!" She screamed at them when they didn't move and galvanised them into action.

Onyx knew who that was, and fear coursed through her chest as memories came flooding back to her. She grabbed whatever pieces of armour she could don and was soon in her full suit, looking like an angel of death as she let out a frosted breath. She swiped blood off her sword and grabbed a long bladed polearm.

"We've got whatever we could find" Jaune gasped as they came out of a room with packs on.

"Good, you need to get out of here now." Onyx ordered.

"You know you can't beat that thing."

"I know, but you three are what is important right now, if I can sacrifice myself so you can free us of this fucked reality, then get moving!" She bellowed at them and shoved them out the door.

They evacuated quickly, and not too soon as a window shattered open, that same slate grey form on the cameras. An audible sigh could be heard from the mask as the armoured freak stood up. "Onyx… It is good to be back." A slight chuckle emanated from his chest.

"Citron… It's been too soon. I didn't nearly have enough time to forget about our last encounter." Onyx start to bite with poison, not one to extend formalities.

"Indeed, how is your ribcage by the way? I hope I didn't hit it too hard that you can't fight." Citron remarked as he swiped some glass off his armour.

His suit was different to hers in every way. He'd be compared to a cyborg or a robot if it wasn't for the all human component about him, the metal seemed to effortlessly conform to his shape and move with him. He was a living weapon, a force to be reckoned with.

She subconsciously drifted her hand to her ribcage, the memory of that blinding pain still there in her mind. "It is fine… Why are you here?"

"Isn't it obvious? Those three are rather important to my employer, and they paid a hefty price to bring them in alive. Of course, collateral always happens, and they may come less intact than first thought." He said it so simply, it sent shivers down her spine.

"Not if I have anything to do about it." She snarled as she stood up straight.

"Really? We're really going to do this again? You know you can't beat me. My suit, my Semblance and my weapon are nigh undefeatable. The only people who could've hoped to have defeated me was that Pyrrha girl, that drunkard Qrow or even Ozpin, let's not comment on Glynda though, shall we? But since ones KIA and the rest MIA, I have nothing to worry about really."

"That is disgusting…" She commented, genuinely feeling nauseas.

"But it's true… So are you going to give them up or am I going to have to get my hands bloodied?"

Onyx responded by getting into a well practised stance. A small and tired sigh came from her combatant before everything happened all at once.

Citron had closed the gap between them in a lightning display of speed, his trademark lever action poleaxe already whistling towards her neck. Onyx blocked with enough force to unsettle the dust on a nearby desk. But he wasn't finished, he whirled around and unleashed a flurry of high strength blows to her defence, her sword met every single one of them.

They soon disengaged. "Well! I am quite surprised you kept up with that considering your injuries, it is mildly surprising and amusing. Excuse me but I'd rather look you in the face." He commented to ridding himself of his helm, placing it on a nearby surface. His face was conventionally handsome, a chiselled jawline and sharp bright eyes lent a near child-like appearance to him.

"Your face hasn't changed a bit, still child-like, which is kind of horrifying." Onyx commented with snark before standing straight, twirling her polearm.

"Oh I know. But you know my story so no use worrying about the past." He commented before he got into another stance. "Prepare yourself."

She nodded before she shone a brilliant white, her Aura outlining her body like a thick casing of armour. "I will fight you, with everything I have."

"I wouldn't have it any other way. Come at me!"

And that she did. While Citron was very fast, Onyx was nearly lightning fast. A bystander wouldn't be able to comprehend her speed. She was in front of him in a flash, longsword already on a trajectory towards his face. He blocked it with skill and redirected it passed him, her polearm following shortly to bury itself in his gut.

He grabbed the shaft and it became a fight of strength between the two.

"GOD, GIVE ME STRENGTH!" Onyx shouted with conviction, before an aura of power overflowed her as she easily wrested the blade away from him and gave a savage kick to his midsection, burying him in the same wall she buried Jaune.

"That's what I am looking for!" He shouted with excitement as he extricated himself from the wall, standing on his own two feet again. He rolled his shoulders and neck, a grim smile on his face. "Finally a challenge!"

She breathed out a deep breath. While her Semblance increased every parameter of her being to extreme lengths, the toll on her body and mind was immense enough to prevent prolonged use. But at the moment, she cared little for her mental side of things.

He intercepted her again, this time an obvious haymaker to disguise the two pronged attack of his poleaxe jabbing at her chest. She wasn't fooled and grabbed both of them again and gave him headbutt, extricating the poleaxe out of his grasp, throwing it away.

He shook his head to clear it before engaging her again with fisticuffs. His speed was impressive, like a blinding machine gunning of his fists. She had to ditch her weapons to engage him in hand to hand combat. Unfortunately, it was not a skill she was expert in, so she was inevitably thrown against a wall and her ribcage pummelled into submission, dents easily forming on her solid steel armour.

It was like a gong ringing over and over again as she took the intense abuse before grabbing his fists mid swing, pushing up against him. With a well placed punch to his chin she spun away and picked up her longsword again, charging him with all of her strength. Her efforts bore fruit as a piece of armour plating was forced to make way as the point found a purchase in his breast plate, digging deeply but not enough to penetrate.

 _With Jaune, Ren and Nora_

"Will she be ok? I heard some intense gunshots and what sound like bells ringing." Nora asked worriedly as she looked back at the compound.

"Keep moving, we can't afford to not use her opportunity to get as much distance from that thing as possible." Jaune remarked as he forced the group in a straight run.

 _Back with Onyx and Citron_

"That wasn't very nice, not very nice at all. It's not cheap to repair this suit you know." Citron commented as a bleeding and wheezing Onyx was on the floor.

He had beaten the shit out of her when she damaged his suit, to the point that it sounded like her breathing was beginning to get wet. She either needed to get away from him now to recover or it needed to end now.

"It… was… a good choice at that point." She wheezed as she got back up, hiding a hammer behind her back.

"You still want to fight!? I will give it to you, you never seem to give up!" He laughed maniacally as he adjusted his gauntlets. "I have to say, you are a dream come true. An opponent that I can beat the shit out of for extended periods of time!"

Onyx wheezed as she got back up, spitting out a mouthful of blood. "Touché. But I will end this now." She growled at him.

"Oh? I will go ahead and allow you one punch." He smiled cockily as he stood in front of her.

She couldn't believe her eyes and ears, but she knew she had one more left in her. She visualised her muscles, her belief, her Semblance as a network of complex patterns. Each subject of her as a person being a major point in that chain. And, in her mind, she began to draw a blinding gold line between them, linking them all into a single piece of truth: She was Onyx Argent, Priestess of the Church, patron of the God of Life and Light. She defended the weak, defeated the evil. And tonight, that didn't change.

She felt a wave of energy that coursed through her veins like an addictive drug as her Aura flashed again. She peered up to a sneering Citron. That is when a moment of clarity entered her head, blasting any fog of tiredness that plagued her mind. It was either act now or die.

With this surge she let out a roar of defiance as she channelled her Semblance to lengths she never used before. With a movement that was so fast that time seem to skip, her left fist broke the sound barrier on its way towards Citron's chest. With a sound akin to a train wreck, Citron was sent flying backwards almost immediately, crashing through the walls with impunity and out into the tundra of Atlas.

Once the action was done, she felt her arm torn asunder. It was dislocated from the joint and every tendon and muscle was damaged. She felt like her arm was on fire, as she feebly grabbed her longsword and put it back in its sheathe before moving off and grabbing a bag that was already packed.

With one final glance back at the room, before heading out in an attempt to catch up with the group.

 _Few minutes and a hastened reunion later_

"This will be the best place to stay, for now until we get our strength back." Onyx gritted her teeth as she gingerly lifted the pack off her shoulders and chucked it to the ground. "No fire by the way, we don't want to leave a trail of ourselves."

The other three nodded amicably as they all began to roll out their beds. Jaune looked over to see her disfigured arm, worry touching his face. "Are you ok?"

Onyx looked at where he was staring, seeing her arm completely dislocated in every possible place, the flesh nearly torn and mixed with a mottling of purple and red. "That's… vaguely concerning." She commented grimly as the adrenaline covered up her pain. "That'll most likely immobilise me soon… Oi, blondie, give me that rag over there."

She pointed towards a rag that was sticking out of her beg, to which Jaune dutifully grabbed and handed it to her. "There should be a small vial of Ice Dust, grab that."

A small vial soon followed after. "My arm has been destroyed beyond conventional repair at this point in time. Every ligament, every muscle, every bit of sinew that makes up my arm has been wrecked from the strength I had to put in my final attack… It would be accurate to say that I probably won't ever use this arm again… At least, not for a very long time." Her voice was bereft of emotion as she dabbled the Dust on the rag and with a few deft moves of her other hand, she made a makeshift arm sling. "You, boy. Help me." She ordered of Jaune, whom nodded and tied it to the best of his ability, following her instructions to tighten it as she asked.

"This'll have to do. I am hoping that the Dust will reduce the swelling… But I will be limited to one arm in the mean time."

Following her monologue, almost as if she was speaking to herself, she stood up and looked at the three of them. "That thing was a freelancer sent to bring you guys back to whoever their employer was."

Three stunned silences, broken by a tremor from Ren. "W-why?"

"You three are linked to Team RWBY, who have so far made quite a name for themselves at the Fall of Beacon, at the Battle of Haven and now. Any and all people who are linked to these four girls, however inexplicably so, must be one of extreme interest. It is this interest that fuels people's sick tendencies. They want to know whatever you know, whether they will extract it forcefully is but an inevitability."

It was Nora who spoke up first, wide eyed. "W-what do we do now?"

"We lay low and fight dirty. There will inevitably be more people who will send their pawns to get you. Congratulations, you three have become the most interesting people on Remnant, besides RWBY that is. Now I've prattled on enough. He won't be back tonight, or tomorrow… He does not tend to rush in once he has been shown he can be defeated." Onyx stated firmly as she stood up, her arm bounded in sling while her longsword was in her other hand. "I will take watch for the night, you three have had enough excitement for the night and will need to retire to gain your full strength. We leave before first dawn, continuing onwards until we arrive at the first mumblings of the Winter Maiden."

The three nodded, before going to silently roll out their sleeping bags. However, none of them could find sleep easily despite the shadow Onyx casted over them. There were people out there, willing to kill them because they knew of Team RWBY.

It was quite different when it was the Grimm who were hunting them. They were but beasts being commanded by a mistress who loathed _all_ of humanity. But now there was a visceral human tinge to this hunt. People, humans, were hunting them. All for what they knew.


	3. The More the Merrier

_An: Sorry for the short one today guys, and for the real long update. Life has been at that point where you don't want to do anything and any motivation is sucked up by university. I'm really sorry for the long update. Hope you enjoy!_

Pain… That was the first sensation Onyx felt as she was stirred from her slumber. Her arm throbbed with a tooth chattering ache that reached into her core. Every fibre in that arm seemed to pulsate and exude pain with each and every heartbeat.

"That's the last time I go all out like that." She mumbled to herself as she opened her eyes, the light of dawn creeping over the horizon and bathing her in a warm light. "At least the sun is as bright as ever." She grumbled before getting out of bed and doing some morning stretches.

The rest of the party were still in their blankets, and she felt it would be rude to wake them up when it was so early in the morning. But she felt a pair of eyes on them.

Could it be the man from before? No… He was likely to have gone home to think of a strategy, so who did this gaze belong to?

A pained gasp was all she could manage as she slid her longsword out of its sheath and leant on it, breathing out hard. "F-fuck, I need to see someone."

She nearly vomited as she stood up, the cool morning air doing wonders for her gut as it passed over her face. Her thoughts focussed, she cast a gaze to where she felt the stalker was at. "You know it quite useless to hide when I've found you." She spoke clearly to the clearing.

At first there was nothing, but then a rustle. A rustle followed by snow being tramped upon as a tall, slender man came from the bushes.

They were wearing a skin-tight blue body suit. But what drew Onyx's eyes was the evil crimson spear he wielded. It hung loosely from his grasp and his stance was casual. "Yo Onyx, been a while!"

The face broke into a wide grin as his free hand gave her a wave. Dumbstruck, she instinctively waved back. "Azure? Is that you!? What are you doing here!?"

"Firstly yes, that is my name. Secondly yes, it is me. Thirdly, I heard a big lumping idiot that we know got sent flying out of a building. Now I know that you had something to do with that. Only one person I know to do that is you, since you're crazy and head strong enough to send that poor sucker out the way he came in."

"I-I'm glad you're here." She sighed in relief. Out of all the people she could've ran into, he was one of the best options.

"Aye you look right buggered up. So lemme guess, you went a bit hard this time?" He asked, striding to her with his lance on his shoulders.

"Yeah I pushed myself too hard and I think it might be irreversible." She explained as she stood up taller. He came over, clucking his tongue in disappointment as he looked over her.

"Wounds were never really your speciality, were they?" He chuckled and wrapped her uninjured arm around his shoulder and led her to a stump. "While I do highly admire your tenacity and your stubbornness, sometimes it is more beneficial to lose every once in a while?"

"Easy for you to say, I don't think you've forgotten how you lost our last bout." She smirked at him.

"Hey now, no fair to use that on me while I'm helping you." Azure pointed out as he gazed at her injured arm.

"Fine, I'll let you off the hook just this once."

"Who is this?" A female voice can be heard. The pair looked to the source and found Nora nervously gripping her hammer.

"Ho hey now slow your roll pretty lady. I know this sorry excuse of a sensei." He chuckled and patted Onyx on her injured arm, on purpose.

"Y-yes. Unfortunately I know this poor example of a student." Onyx clenched her teeth and beared the pain, shooting daggers at him.

Nora nodded and lowered her hammer. "Alright then. If she says that she trusts you, then I trust you… Kinda."

"Then that's good enough for me. Can you find me spare rags and maybe something for her to bite on?" Azure asked Nora, looking over the injured limb.

Nora looked at Onyx nervously, who nodded for her to go on. "Alright, I'll be back soon." She disappeared as she went to their camp.

"Good kid. Are you babysitting a bunch of kids?" Azure smirked.

"Yeah… Got called in as a favour I owed to an old coot, wanted me to escort these kids while they look for one of the Maidens."

"Maidens… Those are those hyper powered chicks with elemental powers that are crazier than Semblances, right?" He asked as he saw Nora return with a bag.

"Yeah. Also don't tell anyone else that, it was a secret told in trust, alright?" She looked at him seriously.

"Alright alright I understand, no speaky the secrety." He laughed at his childish joke, reaching for the bag provided.

"You know how sad it is to hear someone laugh at their own joke?" Onyx jabbed.

"Yeah yeah, now bite on this like a good girl while I fix your mistake." He shoved a stick in her mouth and grabbed her arm and with counting a few seconds, pulled on the arm harshly before straightening it out and resetting it.

The pain was enough to make her ears ring. Her vision dimmed white as she felt like her whole body was on fire. What only took Azure a second to do felt like an eternity of agony for Onyx. It was a textbook reset of a broken limb sure enough, but the tendons, muscles and ligaments suffered severe trauma from her battle with Citron.

Azure kneeled in front of her and held her steady, staring into her face. "Onyx, breathe. Don't forget to breathe." He reminded her. In response, she took in a great sucking breath.

She glowered at him once her vision returned. "That hurt so bad I could murder you." She growled.

He chuckled at her idle threat. "Love ya too sensei." He hummed a tune as he wrapped her arm up _properly_ in a supportive sling. "Not perfect but it'll definitely work for now. I do suggest you go to a medical professional, and maybe brush up on your own medical training."

"No thanks, that's what I have you for. And stop calling me Sensei, it's bloody weird. And I'm not your teacher anymore." She grumbled.

He stood up and stretched. "Alright, time for you to introduce me to your children."

"Another joke about that and I'll break your arm." She stood up with a grunt of pain.

Speaking of the devil, the rest of the group came to her, all of them looking warily at the blue man. "Onyx… Who is this guy?" Jaune asked as he watched Azure.

"Me? I am a simple guy running around. I was in the area so I thought I'd come over and say hello to my former teacher." He said, all smiles.

'If he was any more laid back, he'd fall backwards.' Jaune thought before turning his gaze back to Onyx. "You okay?"

She breathed out again and nodded. "Just had my arm reset… I'm okay for now… Is the camp packed up?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, we've got all the packs done and ready to go. Where are we headed?"

"W-well it's time for a game of cat and mouse across Atlas. I've heard some rumours of unnatural occurrences, and magic is usually the word to describe them. The info of those rumours were the things I was stockpiling as you guys came in."

"Do you remember any of it?" Jaune asked sceptically.

Onyx barked with laughter. "With the number of hymns and prayers I had to remember I think I would be able to remember certain details at a glance. I remember at least three rumours. One is there were sudden appearances of icicles. No dust thrown, no previous altercations. Just ice forming. Second is the frost developing on the tips of grass in certain parts. While Atlas is cold, it's not cold at this time of the year for frost to develop on grass. And third but not least, there are reports of a foreign looking woman and apparently wherever she steps, ice follows. Now I know these all sound fanciful, but we have no choice but to investigate."

"So where do we begin?" Jaune asked sceptically.

"Well I've drawn circles around the area of at least 50 kilometres, and then drew a triangle from that. So that whole area is where she might be."

"What are the chances of these being call ins?"

"Unlikely, since these rumours have occurred multiple times."

"Well where do we start?" He asked again.

"There is a small village about a day's hike from here that may have seen the Maiden. If we can get a description, a name or even their favourite food it'll help us to know where to go."

"So just senseless marching?"

She gritted her teeth. "Look kid! You can bloody cry and go home whenever you like! No one is forcing you to be here!" She spat at him, finally sick of his bullshit.

He took a step back. "This is a madman's adventure!" He combatted.

She shot up and stormed over to him. "This is what you signed up for you little bitch! Did anybody force you to go half across the world to fight!? No! You made that decision yourself and now that it's starting to get hard, you're throwing in the towel!"

"I haven't thrown in anything yet!" He barked back.

"Good, then shut up, suck it up and stop being a fuck up!" She bellowed. "If I was your fucking dead girlfriend I'd be rolling in my grave!"

"Don't you da…" He started.

"Don't I dare what? Bring her up? You seem to be fine swinging around with her shit on your belt! Got her sash do ya? I notice that the symbol on your shield is an awful fucking lot like her tiara as well! What? Surprised I know that? I also watched TV kid, I'm not stupid. So you either shut up and get your shit together and maybe make her proud or I can pay you to go the fuck back to Vale. Either way, I'm in no mood to deal with bitches." She turned off and started a hard march, stooping down to grab her bag.

Ren and Nora looked between each other in shock before looking at Jaune. His cheeks burnt with embarrassment and indignation at being talked to like that. Sighing with a gruffness in his voice he stooped to grab his bag as well, following Onyx. "Come on guys." He mumbled as he passed them.

Azure stood there in the back with an amused look on his face. "Well, been a while since Teach blew up like that. Must mean she likes them." He barked with laughter before following behind.


End file.
